War and Peace

NAPOLEON began the war with Russia because he could not resist
going to Dresden, could not help having his head turned by the
homage he received, could not help donning a Polish uniform and
yielding to the stimulating influence of a June morning, and could
not refrain from bursts of anger in the presence of Kurakin and
then of Balashev.

Alexander refused negotiations because he felt himself to be
personally insulted. Barclay de Tolly tried to command the army
in the best way because he wished to fulfil his duty and earn
fame as a great commander. Rostov charged the French because he
could not restrain his wish for a gallop across a level field; and in
the same way the innumerable people who took part in the war
acted in accord with their personal characteristics, habits, circumstances, and aims. They were moved by fear or vanity, rejoiced
or were indignant, reasoned, imagining that they knew what they
were doing and did it of their own free will, but they all were
involuntary tools of history, carrying on a work concealed from
them but comprehensible to us. Such is the inevitable fate of men
of action, and the higher they stand in the social hierarchy the
less are they free.

The actors of 1812 have long since left the stage, their personal
interests have vanished leaving no trace, and nothing remains of
that time but its historic results.

Providence compelled all these men, striving to attain personal
aims, to further the accomplishment of a stupendous result no one
of them at all expected -- neither Napoleon, nor Alexander, and
still less any of those who did the actual fighting.

The cause of the destruction of the French army in 1812 is
clear to us now. No one will deny that that cause was, on the
one hand, its advance into the heart of Russia late in the season
without any preparation for a winter campaign, and on the other,
the character given to the war by the burning of Russian towns
and the hatred of the foe this aroused among the Russian people.
But no one at the time foresaw (what now seems so evident) that

Print this page

While we understand printed pages are helpful to our users, this limitation is necessary
to help protect our publishers' copyrighted material and prevent its unlawful distribution.
We are sorry for any inconvenience.